Friday night in Brooklyn at Pete's Candy Store (a very cozy bar) left me with an amazing discovery - singer-songwriter Eleanor Dubinsky. Her lyrics in English, Spanish and French are romantic and heartfelt, I could have listened to her exceptional voice for hours. After a very hectic week it was just the perfect way to start into the weekend.
Everyone coming to NYC this summer should visit one of her concerts. Eleanor's songs are a mixture of many styles - folk, soul and Latin rhythms - every song is different in a surprising way. Her voice is soft and strong in a perfect balance - and when she plays the cello she is just gorgeous. I can only say, one of the best live performers I have seen in a long time. Here is an exclusive video of her concert on Friday:
Her new album "Touch the Sky" was just released. You can also find Eleanor @
Brooklyn songwriters Amber Rubarth and Alex Wong are behind the band The Paper Raincoat. Even though they are a young band, their debut EP was released in July 2008, Alex and Amber already have many supportive fans. Their music was even placed on the film "The Last Song", based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks. With tradeyourtalent Amber and Alex speak about curiosity and discovery.
On your website you write that your are an imaginative collaboration. What do you mean by that?
ALEX: The idea of exploration and imagination is central to the concept of this band. The whole idea for the project was born out of a creative improv exercise we decided to try one day. We started describing a world filled with certain characters and the beginnings of a storyline, and let those elements guide a lot of the song ideas.
Has it been a difficult path?
ALEX: We started the project at the beginning of 2008 and played our first band show June 2008. Honestly I think we've been really lucky with people wanting to help us and opportunities coming our way. All independent music is "difficult" at any level but I've definitely had it rougher in other projects, than we have with this project - so thanks everyone!!!
What was the best thing a fan ever said about your music?
ALEX: There was a couple in Colorado that told me they got engaged to our song "sympathetic vibrations" in their kitchen - which i thought was pretty awesome... but i think the time i remember the most was a lady in Kansas who said "your music makes me want to like myself more."
What does creativity and inspiration mean to you? What inspires your music?
ALEX: i'm sure Amber has her own take on this, but for me, it means asking questions. Curiosity is the key to creativity for me. It's much less about needing to supply an answer than just asking good questions. As far as song ideas, i think they always come from things i'm wondering, things i don't know.
AMBER: I feel like in this project especially, the inspiration has come a little differently - it's not as much self-reflection or coming up with an idea and playing it out, but more exploration into stream-of-consciousness activities of writing our story-line and then feeding that into the music. It's a lot of fun and feels like a discovery more so than a creation in many ways.
You are still a young band, but you've got many fans already. Are you sometimes overwhelmed by that?
AMBER: We've been really fortunate to be able to tour with artists we really love who've introduced us to their fans. We opened early on for Vienna Teng quite a bit and that's been amazing, she has really helped us be able to do a lot of the live shows in front of fantastic audiences.
What have you planned for your spring tour?
AMBER: Not exactly sure yet, we're mostly writing right now and working a bit on individual solo projects as well.... we want to have some new recordings to share before hitting the road again, so finishing that up first. We do have a NYC show Feb. 25th @ Highline Ballroom, and a show in Ann Arbor on April 22nd @ The Ark.
I recently discoverd Olivia Broadfield's music. British singer/songwriter Olivia combines electro-pop and smart lyrics, her new album is due out in Spring 2011. The singer/songwriter from England started piano lessons at age six, some of Olivia's natural abilities might have come from her maternal grandfather who played guitar in the swing-era. With tradeyourtalent Olivia speaks about her new album, being faithful to what she loves and why she would like to record a duet with Shakira.
You have been working on your second album. What is your new album going to sound like?
It's going to sound different, quite different, which scares me! You can't stay the same as an artist but you have to make sure that when you evolve, you try and keep the fans you just made. It's much more organic, the songs feel more like ermmm songs and nothing is hidden, there are still some big beautiful sounds, but they come from harps and strings, whereas on the first album they came from synths and pads. While it sounds different, I still wanted to stay faithful to what I love about writing, which is melody, always about the melodies.
What inspires you to your songs?
Everything, nothing. I am asked this question a lot and as yet I am still trying to find an answer that truly reflects how I feel about writing. Songs can come to me from nowhere or from the deepest parts of me, so that it feels like they came from nowhere until I sit and reflect and think uh oh, is that really how I feel!? I try not to analyse the process to much for fear of losing its simplicity.
When are you most creative?
You mean time of the day...time of the month!? I think it's an as and when rule with me, I can write a song if someone asks me to, I can write a song if I'm a bit bored, or sometimes it's like an itch I need to scratch. It's a total mixed bag really, sun makes me creative, as does snow, day...night, happiness...sadness. That's not to say I walk round being super creative 24/7, some days it's like getting blood out of a stone!
When did you know you wanted to become a musician?
Hmmm, when I started getting good at it! I always loved music but I think I was a nervous beginner, I always thought I was just alright until people started telling me otherwise, until TV shows started using my music, until I got a manager, until Vagrant wanted to sign me. I had the faith that I could be good but it took a while, believe me, I have some bad albums from when I was 19 floating around out there, my sister keeps threatening to sell them on ebay...sisters are kind of mean...
If you could record a duet with another artist, who would you choose?
Shakira, Shakira! God I love her, she is just so brilliant and also totally random, "I feel abused like a coffee machine in an office"..."lucky that my breasts are small and humble so you don't confuse them with mountains"...I'm not sure I've ever truly made it until I can write like that! Plus she has nice hair...
Olivia Broadfield "Daydreams"
first single from her Olivia's new album due out in Spring 2011
Desire, love and lost feelings - the songs by singer/songwriter Yestyn Griffiths from Glass Pear are a combination of a hearbreaking voice and beautiful lyrics. I have been listening to his songs all week and I really can't stop... (Listen for yourself:http://www.glasspearmusic.com/ ).
"Say it once" and "Where is my home" are my personal favorites. Yestyn was born in Wales and he is the brother of recording artist Jem. His songs have been featured in episodes of 90210, Vampire Diaries and One Tree Hill. We will definitely hear lots more from this artist! With tradeyourtalent he speaks about the recklessness of passionate love and knowing when a song is really done.
What inspires you to your songs?
Inspiration is a mystery isn't it? I said in a recent interview that meditation inspires me. That's true. There's definitely a well of creativity that surges up when I'm deeply relaxed. But I also am inspired by witnessing all the wonderful things about life - the uncontrollable energy of children, the dignity and wisdom of old people, the recklessness of passionate love, the buzzing energy of a city, the quiet of nature...
Has it been difficult getting to where you are now?
Yes, I'd say it has been a creative ordeal! But it hasn't all been difficult. Like life, its been both joyous and challenging.
When do you know, you've just finished a great song?
Well, I don't know if I've ever written a truly great song, maybe its an illusive dream that keeps me passionate about writing. When I write a song that I love I often have a surge of emotion about it. As in the poem below, my heart knows when a song is done.
If you could give advice to young artists with just a couple of lyrics, what would you sing to them?
Live and die by the heart
It may not have eyes like your head
But it knows by feeling
Which way to go
Every time.
She hasn't always been performing popular music. Singer/songwriter Helen Austin from Middlesex, United Kingdom, started out playing the flute at the national level. Helen just released her new Album "Treehouse". Her self-produced music videos get over half a million viewers online, recently her song "Love is" aired on the CW's famous One Tree Hill. She has also written songs for fundraising occasions such as "Relay" written to raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Relay For Life event. With tradeyourtalent she speaks about her second career and how she creates her best songs.
What inspires you to your songs?
All sorts of things. I used to just write about my own experiences but that had potential to get me in trouble. So I started writing about characters from books and movies. A lot of the time I just sit down and start writing and see what words come out of my mouth and take it from there.
Has it been difficult getting to where you are now?
Yes and No. This is my 2nd career, my first was as a stand up comedian, so I knew what to expect in the amount of work and time it takes to get a career going. But there is a lot of hard work and a lot of it is tedious administrative stuff. I am surprised I have got as far as I have in the last 2 years but I work really hard at this because I really want it to work.
When do you know, you've just finished a great song?
When it writes itself. The ones that take a long time to write don't flow like the ones that I write in 30mins. Obviously there is some lyric tweaking but my best songs have come to me very quickly. And then there are surprises when people like a song that you thought was just ok.
If you could give advice to young artists with just a couple of lyrics, what would you sing to them?
oooh... hard one... here's what I can think of now...
